I have been a quote collector and quote monger for at least as long as I've been an atheist and probably a good deal longer. My admiration for those who enjoy reputations as wordsmiths extends even further back, whether we're talking about John F. Kennedy's assertion: "We choose to go to the moon," George Santayana's warning: "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it," or James T. Kirk's deft observation when faced with the dauntingly huge First Federation ship: "Not chess, Mr. Spock ... poker!"

The realm of atheist activism has had its own share of verbal craftsmen and women, from Madalyn Murray O'Hair's: "An atheist believes that a hospital should be built instead of a church." to Aron Ra's succinct: "If you can't show it, you don't know it."

Regardless of the topic, these are words which are capable of fomenting inspiration, reflection, and sometimes even action. They can educate and illuminate the human condition and allow us to better know ourselves. That said, here is an open invitation to share those words which have been particularly meaningful or impactful or timely or just special to you for one reason or another.

Let's share those words and have fun!

One bit of clerical business: please hold your quotes in the comment area below to 20 lines or 200 words. One comment should not so dominate the Home page of this group that no other comment is visible. That way, the briefer comments and quotes of all participants are more likely to be seen, read, and appreciated. If you have a long quote or commentary, create a post, please.

Discussion Forum

There has been a major shot across President Donald Trump's bow and it came, believe it or not, from Fox News. Specifically, it came from Fox reporter and commentator Neil Cavuto, in response to a…Continue

Last week Loren shared this quotation in the group comments:But here steps in Satan, the eternal rebel, the first freethinker and the emancipator of worlds. He makes man ashamed of his bestial…Continue

On 31 May, 2018, Joan Denoo posted a most excellent quote from David Hume: That quote was well deserving of a response, which is the following:The most preposterous notion that H. sapiens has ever…Continue

"I do not believe that just because you're opposed to abortion, that that makes you pro-life. In fact, I think in many cases, your morality is deeply lacking if all you want is a child born but not a…Continue

Morality is an “emergent property” of evolution. Seeing that all humans are largely the same in the major particulars of brain and mind — which includes our ability to develop a conscience — it’s no surprise that the same (or similar) moral sensibilities and attributes would emerge across the globe, even for communities that don’t know each other.

Here’s a plain fact: No theist who has ever lived — yeah, I’m about to make a huge claim — has been able to show a super-natural essence (deliberate hyphen for emphasis) of moral behavior that inextricably leads back or can be traced to some Celestial Being, who, as believers contend, is said to be a Moral Lawgiver. Sorry, but there is zero evidence that a Celestial Moral Lawgiver squirts or injects morality into human beings. I use “crude” language here — squirts, injects — only to dramatically underscore the ridiculousness of the theist’s view: the belief that humans are only moral creatures because we’ve been somehow given our sense of morality by an outside (and unseen) source. An objective source, one might say. -- Barry Lyons

Barry puts it down with no apologies. Morality as an "emergent property," something which, if you've got it, you survive better (and if you don't, you probably won't!), much the same as any biological trait. An interesting way to look at it.

The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell

This is another one of those quotes which should have shown up here a LONG time ago. The insistence on certainty and the inability or unwillingness to question on the part of believers may be as dangerous as they are foolish. I mean, I don't doubt Ohm's Law much ... but I DO touch my leads together to check zero offset before I measure a resistor!

If I could stop a man from raping a child, I would. That's the difference between me and your God. -- Tracie Harris

Ms. Harris has been a powerful contributor to The Atheist Experience for as long as I can remember, and the quote cited above is one example among many of her clear understanding of the difference between biblcal and human morality. Would that believers could see that difference.

Much as I deplore the policies and practices of the U.S. even from the Founding Parents who supported slavery and accepted the second class citizenship of women, I believe in the principles upon which our nation was founded. I do not like the effects of nationalism and loyalty to a broken "nation of strangers*," even as I would like to escape to New Zealand or Costa Rica.

Running from a problem proved to be a wise decision when I fled an abusive marriage; running from Trumpism, racism, and nationalism does not hold a promise of an improved environment in which to live.

Therefore, I have to choose how I am to live and thrive in this chaotic nightmare.

1.) I can hide in my room deep in the forest;

2.) I can cry, whine, moan, complain the rest of my life;

3.) I can write and speak in favor of a nation that is honorable, in my opinion;

4.) I can find representatives who advocate for issues important to me;

5.) I can get out the vote by supporting and encouraging voters to take action;